Insole arch support



Jan.11,193s. ESTENER 2,105,381v

INsoLE ARCH SUPPORT Filed Oct. 19, 1935 Patented Jan. 11, 1938 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE Application October 19, 1935, Serial No. 45,786 In Austria June 18, 1935 1 Claim.

Insoles for correcting weak insteps or at feet must, as is known, possess suicient rigidity to form a counterbearing for the abnormal foot shape. With this object in view such insoles were made partly of leather and partly of metal. Such insoles, however, do not quite iuliill the hygienic requirements as they impede the blood circulation in the whole foot sole, subject the tendons and nerves to a continuous painful pinching, rust after being in use for a relatively short time, and sometimes even break under heavy strain.

The invention relates to an insole especially for weak insteps and flat feet which overcomes the drawbacks above set forth. The support is characterized primarily in that it is composed of several wood veneers adapted to the shape of the foot, interconnected like a plywood plate and provided on both sides with a covering of yieldable material, such as leather, intermediate layers of a brous substance being interposed between the veneers and the covering. 'Ihe veneers are preferably reduced in the longitudinal direction of the insole from the middle towards both ends so that the support is slightly flexible on these end portions.

In this manner an insole is produced which is absolutely free from metal and nevertheless possesses the rigidity necessary for an orthopedic support, without being moreover absolutely unyielding so that it can slightly deiorm under too heavy loading. The insole according to the invention is so constructed that it forms a longitudinal and transverse support for the foot.

An embodiment of the invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawing in which:-

Fig. 1 shows the insole in top plan view.

Fig. 2 is a side elevation cf Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a section on line III-III of Fig. l.

Fig. 4 is a section on line IV-IV of Fig. 3.

The insole consists of several superposed wood veneers I interconnected by an adhesive substance insoluble in water, such as nitro-cellulose, and shaped to correspond to the shape of the foot, and of an outer covering 2 of a slightly yieldable substance, such as leather. Between the veneers I `and the outer covering 2 intermediate layers 3 of a bro'us material, preferably in the form of woven material or fabric, these layers being impregnated for example with nitrocellulose and stuck on the outer veneers.

The veneers I are joined in the manner customary in the making of plywood plates so that the grains of two superposed veneers extend at right angles to one another. The portion of the insole formed by the veneers I is, as can be seen from Fig. 3, so shaped that it is reduced in the longitudinal direction of the insole from the middle towards both ends or the end portions 4 and 5 are thinner than the middle portion so that the insole is slightly yieldable at these end portions but in the main portion possesses suicient rigidity for supporting the arch and the heel. The form of the insole is accurately adapted to the shape of the foot to be corrected. The middle portion 6 is convexly curved according to the abnormality of the foot and the end portions are provided with depressions 1 and 8 respectively in the heel and ball regions.

The insole is bent upwards at both sides in the transverse direction. The bent up portion 9 situated on the inner side of the shoe, towards the middle of the body, is higher than the bent up portion I on the other side so that the insole forms so to say a bed for the joint of the foot, which bed is constructed to correspond with the anatomical proportions of the foot and supports the foot in longitudinal and transverse direction.

The insole has perforations I I to allow for perspiration of the foot.

The improved insole according to the invention can be made in different shapes according to the kind of abnormality of the foot and the stage of the disease, so that it is possible to correct the abnormality of the foot in stages.

I claim:-

An insole arch support, comprising in combination a plurality of thin wood veneer layers interconnected by means of an adhesive insoluble in Water and covered on both sides with an outer covering of leather, and intermediate layers of fibrous material impregnated with a waterproofing substance interposed between the outer wood veneer layers and the said outer covering of leather and stuck on the outer veneer layers, the support being tapered towards its edges.

EUGEN STEINER. 

